The cost to produce and analysis the consultations specified: FOI release

Information requested

“The total cost to produce and analysis the following consultations?”:

1. Building Regulations: Determining the principles for a Scottish equivalent to the Passivhaus standard: Stage 1 consultation
2. Investing in Planning: a consultation on resourcing Scotland’s planning system
3. Development plan amendment regulations: consultation
4. Masterplan consent area regulations: consultation
5. Enhancing the accessibility, adaptability and usability of Scotland’s homes: consultation
6. Landlord and tenant engagement questionnaire on rented sector reform
7. Building Warrant Fees: consultation
8. Council tax on second and empty homes/ Non-domestic rates: consultation
9. Additional Dwelling Supplement: Proposals for Change
10. Guidance on Providing Community Equipment and Housing Adaptations
11. A New Deal for Tenants - draft Rented Sector Strategy consultation
12. Review of the Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement
13. Building standards (fire safety) - a consultation on external wall systems
14. Domestic Energy Performance Certificates reform
15. Home energy efficiency: equity loan pilot
16. Scottish Social Housing Charter Review

Response

This is a formal notice under Section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not hold some of the information you have requested.

It may help if I explain that Civil Servants (Scottish Government officials in this instance) operate flexibly across a range of policies and programmes according to the specific requirements of their work at any given time. They do not, as a matter of course, record the proportion of their time spent working on particular matters. I would also note that Scottish Government officials would be involved throughout the production and analysis stages of the consultation process (in terms of both internal work by officials and engagement with external third parties) which would constitute part of the overall total cost incurred.

As noted above officials do not record the proportion of their time spent on any given matter(s), subsequently it would not be possible to determine the internal Scottish Government costs attributed to staff time spent on the above consultations specified in your request which would form a part of the total overall cost.

Therefore, it is not possible to provide a “total cost” figure incurred by the Scottish Government for each of the consultations specified in your request. However, I have provided a partial cost figure for each consultation below for your convenience (please note that these figures do not include costs attributed to Scottish Government staff time as noted above):

Consultation		Cost (including VAT where it applies)
(1) Building Regulations: Determining the principles for a Scottish equivalent to the Passivhaus standard: Stage 1 consultation		£27,835.28 (to date, consultation in progress)
(2) Investing in Planning: a consultation on resourcing Scotland’s planning system		£3,899.41
(3) Development plan amendment regulations: consultation		£2,880.30
(4) Masterplan consent area regulations: consultation		£1,880.69
(5) Enhancing the accessibility, adaptability and usability of Scotland’s homes: consultation		£43,326.51
(6) Landlord and tenant engagement questionnaire on rented sector reform		£22,949.66
(7) Building Warrant Fees: consultation		£17,059.32
(8) Council tax on second and empty homes/ Non-domestic rates: consultation		£35,156.85
(9) Additional Dwelling Supplement: Proposals for Change		£1,030.98
(10) Guidance on Providing Community Equipment and Housing Adaptations		£8,208.18
(11) A New Deal for Tenants - draft Rented Sector Strategy consultation		£43,995.71
(12) Review of the Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement		£12,001.20
(13) Building standards (fire safety) - a consultation on external wall systems		£8,309.84
(14) Domestic Energy Performance Certificates reform		£768.81
(15) Home energy efficiency: equity loan pilot		£22,783.00
(16) Scottish Social Housing Charter Review		£38,565.00

About FOI

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